Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Hi,
you can call me Evelin or just Eve 😉 I’m the youngest of three girls, the unexpected, and a month early benjamin of the family. Yeah, I have been born exactly a month before the theoretical birthdate. I guess I just couldn’t wait to read all the awesome books.
Since I was little, I proved to be somehow a weirdo XD Like creating hoist (a tackle) without seeing it before (My mom said there was nothing like that on TV during that time, so she wondered where that came from.), underlining all As in an English-Czech vocabulary on ten or so pages (My oldest sister knows the best – she had to erase all the lines after all XD Not a single A was missed.), or setting laser-rope-labyrinth ala Fort Boyard in my room (After my mom walked into my Boyard-room for the first time, she always checked if there weren’t strings in the door.).
Did I mention I tied my oldest sister’s feet when she was sleeping, waiting for her waking up? Even as five or so years old I knew I couldn’t tie her too tight as she would notice too soon. And guess what, she woke up and sprawled across the floor like a frog. And me? I watched the result of my experiment with a poker face. Do I need to mention my oldest sister then checked if her legs were free?
And that’s not all. My other favorite story is from when I was an older baby (I could sit well). My older sister (yes, my other sibling) is the main “antagonist” here. Mom had those wooden mushrooms tools for sewing or knitting (I’m not sure now, but the older generations may remember them), and I loved to play with them. I just held them and waved my hands.
And my older sister wanted one and tried to take it from me. I was sitting in my bed with my limbs hanging out. And of course, I didn’t want to share my most favorite toys, so I smacked my sister with one mushroom across her forehead. She yelled, but after this, she never tried to take them from me ^_^;
After all the time, I share a good bond with both of my sisters (and no, they didn’t forget about any of this XD).
My present-self, hmm… I consider myself to be quite a positive gal, trying to think about the better things. I do my best to encourage others as well. I know well I suck in many things, but I try to get better even if bit by bit.
Apart from writing, I enjoy reading and sewing. When the weather is nice, I go outside and take a few photos here and there from my town. I do like traveling, but I get very nervous, as I sort of need to know that place a bit first before going on bigger explorations.
In a way, I have written many stories and some ended up as books… sort of. However, NinRai is the first official eBook, I have published, but I hope to see more of my creations reaching readers across the whole world.
Well, have a great time 🙂
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest and the first eBook is NinRai – MissAdventures For Two
This is a bit of funny story; I was writing in my mother language since middle school and had a bit of following. One day, a fellow member asked me if I could write a short fantasy story for their Writing Summer Camp. I can’t describe how happy I was.
I started brainwashing immediately. It took me two days to figure out the basic premise – two trouble-magnets and bounty hunters on a quest to fill their noisy stomachs. Both Kairo and Arubi are inspired by Anime and Manga from Japan. So you can expect some wacky behavior or reactions. Everything about them has a hidden meaning – from white hair and red eyes to Kairo’s kimono.
Kairo is mostly inspired by Kai Hiwatari from Beyblade visuals-wise, but his personality is your average 14-year-old kid who thinks long after he causes problems XD
Arubi is an average-looking, white rabbit with a bag full of wonders and ninja tools. He smokes a long pipe kiseru and is the level-headed one of the duo. Say a magic word, and he will turn into a war-machine. So yeah, a totally normal rabbit.
And a year ago, I decided to rewrite the story into an eBook format in English to present it to even wider audience. The story is twice as long as the original but retained many scenes. The biggest obstacle proved to be a specific joke that I couldn’t directly translate, so I rewrote the scene. But otherwise, the rewriting was smooth sailing.
I especially enjoyed putting all sort of Easter Eggs and puns inside.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I don’t suppose writing down all sort of notes is weird? Like for a whole chapter… perhaps the book? Okay, just me…
Well, it’s not unusual for me to have at least two and more versions of certain scenes and to write them differently on the spot. So I guess no weird habits for me ^_^;
What authors, or books have influenced you?
I have read a lot of books as a kid, but before I could read on my own, I forced my oldest sister to read me Jules Verne’s Mysterious Island. I’m sure it was because of the beautiful illustrations inside of the book that told me to read it. But the story sucked me in and since then I loved adventure stories.
What are you working on now?
I’m working on a direct sequel to NinRai: MissAdventures For Two titled Face Stealer. There Kairo comes face to face with his greatest enemy he has faced till that day, and it may cost him his face… literally.
Puns may or may not be intentional…
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’m new to this whole promotion business, so I try whatever method I find.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t be afraid to fail or publish an edited draft with mistakes. We all learn from our mistakes after all. Just because your book doesn’t have millions of reads, doesn’t mean it’s bad. And the opposite is true too. Be patience, keep writing and getting better, and I’m sure you will find your reader-base and style 😉
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Keep going. Yeah, general but true.
What’s next for you as a writer?
I suppose finishing the next book and then the whole series. After that? Writing some more. Popularity? Perhaps. If my book can make somebody happy, that’s good enough.
Author Websites and Profiles
Evelin A. Hope Website
Evelin A. Hope Author Profile on Smashwords